Nightmares
by NovellaLuna
Summary: Nightmares have been keeping Dean awake since he returned from hell, but can Cas help?
1. Chapter 1

**Nightmares**

A/N: I wrote this ages ago and I was weary to upload it, but I've decided I want to start sharing my writing with people so I can improve. It's not really set at a specific time, but it would probably take place sometime in season 4. Thank you for reading!

* * *

Dean sat in the middle of a busy diner with nothing but his thoughts for company. A coffee sat untouched before him, it's stale contents wavered with the frequent opening and closing of the door. He'd bought it more out of appearances than actually wanting it.

Bright sunlight trickled in from the masses of windows as the sun peeked through the clouds. His head fell forwards and he rested his eyes against clenched fists. Nightmares had kept him up at night and it was all getting too much for him. He hadn't gone a single night since he returned from Hell without one. Each morning he'd been dragged awake to find himself in a hot sweat, tangled in the motel bed sheets with horrific memories torturing his mind. In fact, he was lucky if he made it all the way to morning without being awoken. He was just thankful his nightmares were silent – it helped him hide it all from Sam.

Dean was vaguely aware of someone coming to sit opposite him in the booth, but he didn't bother looking to see who it was. The diner was busy, he figured they'd just ran out of seats and he'd been forced to share the table with someone. He just hoped there wouldn't be more joining them. Carefully the occupant placed a comforting hand over Dean's, making him jump. He flinched and retracted his hands away from the calloused palm, looking up to scold whoever had the nerve to...

His eyes fell on Castiel. Castiel's deep blue eyes focused on his dark ones; his dark hair was sticking up at odd angles atop his head as though he'd just woken up. A light smile spread across his face. He smiled so few times, that Dean couldn't help but return it when he did.

"Are you alright, Dean? You looked," He paused and squinted his eyes slightly, thinking of the right word, "thoughtful." Dean chuckled half-heartedly at his choice but didn't answer.

Though Castiel's brows furrowed, he didn't pry any further. When it came to Dean, it was best to wait for him to talk to you. Forcing him to talk would get him nowhere and only make Dean close up even more. Instead, he changed the subject, "do you want to go for a walk?"

"Sure." Dean replied, gratefully. If he sat still any longer, he may give in to the fatigue overtaking his senses and fall asleep right there.

The untouched coffee was forgotten as they left and slowly made their way back to the motel he'd been sharing with Sam. He hoped that he would be out when they got back – he didn't have the energy to try to hide his state from him. Although just being with Castiel calmed Dean down and shrank the nightmares to ant size where they trod on them with each step. Dean didn't know how he'd cope when Cas inevitably left him again. They walked side by side in silence, their shoulders brushed every now and again.

A note had been left on the motel room table for them when they returned, it told them Sam was out researching for a case he thought he'd found and wouldn't be back until late. Dean collapsed on a bed and closed his eyes, figuring he could worry about it later. This was the fifth time Sam had thought he'd found a case in this town, it was probably nothing and they'd be on their way to the next town by tomorrow afternoon. The time between cases was always the hardest – the imminent danger wasn't there to distract him and keep him awake.

Dean hit the pillow into the right shape and snuggled into the scratchy sheets. Even if he didn't let the sleep overtake him, at least he could get comfortable. Castiel stood awkwardly by the door, unsure what he should do now. He knew Dean didn't like it when he watched him sleeping, but he was also finding it hard to tear himself away. Just as he'd convinced himself that Dean was better left to sleep undisturbed, he was stopped. "Cas," Dean opened his eyes slowly but avoided eye contact. "Would you, um, would you like to sleep next to me?"

Castiel could see Dean's sudden nervousness, but didn't understand the meaning behind Dean's words, "you know I don't need to sleep."

Dean looked completely away as he continued and muttered almost inaudibly, "would you like to lie with me while I sleep?"

When no answer came, Dean thought Castiel had left and he'd scared him away. He dragged a shaky hand across his face and sighed thinking he'd ruined it. He was about to get up and go out again, not wanting to lie there plagued with thoughts of his failure, when he felt a light pressure on the bed next to him.

Slowly, he turned around to find Castiel lying next to him and smiled. His trench coat had been shedded and laid on the chair behind him, this was one of the few times he'd seen him parted from it. Cas kicked his shoes off and indicated that Dean should do the same. He unbuttoned the top of his shirt and pushed into the sheets to get comfortable before turning back to face Dean.

Cautiously, Dean shuffled closer and looked Castiel carefully in the eyes, asking if this was okay with him. He nodded and allowed Dean to rest his head against his chest, he was warm and the soft hair tickled his nose. Castiel hesitated before putting his arm around Dean, uncertain if it was the correct thing to do in their situation. Dean tensed at the touch, but didn't draw away.

Dean reached around and enveloped the angel in the sheets with him as he closed his eyes. A quiet thanks was muttered against Castiel's shirt and Dean felt his heartbeat speed up to match his own. The soft rising and falling of Cas' chest was soothing and it didn't take long for it to lull him into a heavy sleep. For the first time since Castiel brought him back, Dean was nightmare-free.


	2. Chapter 2

**Nightmares - Part 2**

A/N: Thank you so much for the feedback to the first half of this fic! I had originally intended for it to just be left as it was, but a reviewer (WhitR) convinced me to write a second part in which Sam comes back early and finds them, so thank you. I made more references to the show in this part so it definitely does take part in season 4 now. Thank you again for reading.

* * *

Sam sighed as he dropped yet another newspaper into the no-lead pile and reached for another. This was the last one. If this newspaper didn't contain what he was looking for then the lead he thought he found was just another thing to add to the growing list of cases that never were. He flicked through it, scanning the various articles on school plays and money troubles. Nothing. He cursed under his breath as he stood up to take the pile back to the archive drawer.

They'd been here for days but had found nothing, he supposed that was a good thing but it was still deflating. There was something somewhere that needed their help, but finding it was the hard part. It could be anywhere. The angels didn't have any more leads on the seals either which left them with nothing to do but wonder from town to town.

The woman at the counter asked if he'd found what he'd been searching for, but Sam just thanked her in reply as he grabbed the impala keys out of his pocket. Dean would probably be annoyed at him for taking it without asking, but it's not like he was going to use it. Not only was he out, but Sam hadn't failed to notice the dark circles under his eyes and the distant, fatigued state that his brother was in. He was in no state to drive. That's why he'd been dragging out their stay here, desperate for a case. He knew Dean would insist on driving to the next place.

He worried about his brother, but was reluctant to say anything as he wasn't supposed to have noticed. It's a little hard not to see when you wake up in the night and hear the shower running; or hear him get out of bed earlier than he ever has before; or even wake up to find him staring blankly at the ceiling. If things didn't start improving, Sam was going to have to intervene and screw what Dean wanted, this wasn't good for him.

Before Hell, Sam usually woke up first but that never happened now. He really should have expected that something like that would happen if Dean came back. You can't take a trip to Hell and came back fresh as daisies and pretend like nothing had happened. He could hardly imagine what must be plague Dean's dreams – not that he wanted to.

Speaking of Dean, Sam wondered whether he would be back yet. He disappeared just as Sam woke up, muttering something about going to a diner and that he'd be back later. Sam had barely had chance to open his eyes, let alone ask any questions. He glanced at his watch – 2:00pm. Dean was bound to be back by now, he'd been gone for hours and, really, how much time can you spend just sitting in a motel diner?

Jumping in the impala, Sam began to blast the music and take a leisurely ride back. Dean wouldn't be expecting him until much later, he usually spent most the day researching, and it was nice to be able to listen to what he wanted for a change. Dean had always insisted that the driver picked the music and there was no way that Sam was ever allowed to drive his _baby._

Half an hour later, he was pulling up outside their room. The curtains of which were drawn neatly, but Sam was sure he'd opened them before leaving. For once, they didn't have any incriminating items scattered around the room – one of the perks of being somewhere without a case was that they didn't have to unpack their weapons. It was nice to able to let daylight into their room. Sam hoped that the drawn curtains meant that Dean was finally getting some sleep – but that just seemed too good to be true.

He carefully opened the door, not wanting to wake him if his wishful thinking had come true, and peeked his head in. Sam froze. What ever he'd been expecting, it was not this. Dean was in fact asleep, but he wasn't alone. He smiled as he looked upon his peaceful brother curled up in Cas' arms. The trench coat lay forgotten at the table by the door. Cas was softly stroking the back of Dean's head and was so mesmerized that he hadn't even noticed that Sam had entered the room. They looked so calm, lying there tangled together.

Slowly, he shuffled back out of the door and let it softly click into place in an attempt to not alert them to his presence. Sam would hate himself if he disturbed them now, not only was Dean finally getting the calm sleep that he so desperately needed but the two were finally confronting their obvious need for each other. Dean had been tormented with nightmare-filled-tossing-and-turning sleep for too long and all it took was Cas to help make that go away. Sam smiled at the thought as he climbed back in the impala.

He had no idea where he was going to go, but he needed to give the two some more time. He could only imagine what Dean would be like when he woke up and he wouldn't want his brother there to witness that. He only hoped that Dean wouldn't blame it all on his sleep deprived state and that he would actually admitted to Cas how much he needed him. Sam didn't think he could take much more tension between them and winced at the thought – it was driving him crazy.


End file.
